Tamping-machine



0. G. HASTiNGS.

TAMPING MACHINE.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

5 SHEETS- H T I.

C. G. HASTINGS.

'TAMPING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JULY15, I918. RENEWED JUNE 5, HQ.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

5 SHEETSSHEET 2.

llillllillllllllllllll'lll/lllf'illllll'fi I 0 a AWN c. e. HASTINGS.

TAMPING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JULY I5, 1918. RENEWED JUNE 5,1920.1,35 1 1 O6. Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

C. G. HASTINGS.

TAMPING MACHINE. APPLICATIONFILED 1u1v15, 1918. RENEWED JUNE 5.1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 41 Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

E U 1% E 1 5 1 BMW 6 5 C. G. HASTINGS.

TAMPING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULYI5. l9l8. RENEWED JUNE 5, 1920.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

5 SHEETSSHEET 5.

UNITED STATES P'lENT Fl lCE.

TAMPING-MACHINE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

Application filed July 15, 1913, Serial No. 245,021. Renewed .Tune 5,1920. Serial No. 386,922.

To all whom it may (BO/worn Be it known that LConNEmUs G. 'IIAST- INGS,a citizen of the United StatesQand a resident of the city. of Glendale,in the county of Los Angeles and State of (lalifornia, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Tamping-Machines; and I do herebydeclare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description of thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to thenumerals oi? reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

My invention has reference more particularly to a machine for tampingballast around the ties oi. a railroad track.

In railroad construction the ties to which the rails are spiked areembedded. in ballast such as crushed rock gravel or other suitablematerial which is packed firmly against the tie to hold it securely inthe proper position so that eachtie carries its portion of the load andprovides a uniform support for the rails throughout their length. Owingto the severe use to which they are subjected, unusual careis requiredin packing the ballast material to insure a firm foundation which willsecurely hold the ties so that they will not be pounded down orotherwise dislocated or loosened. by the weight, vibration and otherforces due to heavily laden trains moving rapidly thereover, and it isalso frequently necessary to repack the ballast around the ties toreadjust same for the purpose of leveling or straightening the track.Heretotore it has been customary to tamp the ballast by hand tampers orby the use of mechanical tamping devices carried by the operator, butthis is objectionable as it is a slow and tedious process and does notinsure uniformity oi tainping as the operator may tamp the ballast to agreater extent at one place than at another.

It is the object therefore of myinvention to provide a portable tampingmachine which is movable along the railway for tamping the ballastaround the ties, and which insu uniform and thorough tamping.

lt is a further object of my invention to provide a portable tampingmachine having power operated tamping devices which may be readilyadjusted and controlled. to insure a thorough and uniform tamping of theballast around the ties.

Another object oi? my invention is to provide a truck mounted on thetrack and having a carriage thereon movable transversely of the track orlengthwise ot' the ties, and a plurality of power operated tampingdevices on the carria e whereby the uniform tamping of the ballast israpidly accomplished.

dinother objectof my invention is to provide portable device having aframe there- 'on which is automatically reciprocated transversely of thetrack or lengthwise of the ties and is provided with power operatedtamping means thereon, which by reason of the reciprocation of the framet amp the material the entire length of the tie.

Another object of my invention is to provide a portable device having aplurality of power operated tamping members thereon which operateprogressii 'ely along the sides of the tie and are adjustable to andfrom and lengthwise of the tie and may also be elevated and depressed topermit the required adjustment to enable the device to be universallyused for packing the ballast in any railroad construction.

My invention also has other important objects which will appear from thefollowing specification and the accompanying drawings, in which I havedescribed and shown my invention in a preferred form.

911 the drawings:

l ignre l is a top plan view of the tamping device.

2 is a side view of the tamping device looking at the'lower end of Fig.1.

Fig. is a transverse sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. is an enlarged top view of the intermediate portion of the machinecomprising the tamping mechanism.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 55 of Fi Fig. is asectional view on the line 6-6 of Fig. l.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged view partly in section on the line 77 of Fig.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 8-8 of Fig.

Fig. 9 is a TiICIlfiVlGW oi. one of the tamping members showing thelateral angular adustment thereof.

F 10 is a fragmentary view partly in section showing the mechanism forreciproeating the tamper frame.

W an enlarged fragmentary view ed thereon illustrating the verticaladjustment of the tamper.

Fig. 15' is a similar view showing the pivotal adjustment of the tamperto and from the tie.

As shown on the drawings: 7

lily device comprises a truck or small flat car which may be of anysuitable construction which is capable of properly supportingthemechanism and being moved along the rails. In the form illustrated itconsists of a frame having a sill 1 at each side there of which'ha's adepressed intermediate portion 2, for supporting the tamping mechanism,and there are wheels 3, mounted under the elevated end portions, whichsaid wheels are suitably spaced and of the usual flanged I constructionso as to engage the ra1ls,4t,'of a railroad track, and support thetamping device for movement along the track. A pair of spaced channelirons 5, are set on edge and connect the sills 1 at each end of thedepressed portion 2, of the sill and affords a space therebetween forthe tamping -mechanism, and there is a platform 6, at

each end of the truck on opposite sides of the space intermediate of thechannel irons 5, to accommodate the operator or operators of the machineand also the machinery for actuating the tamping mechanism. The ties 7,extend transversely of the rails which are spiked thereon and thetamping mechanism ismounted on the truck so as to reciprocatetransversely of the rails and parallel with. the ties. I

For supporting the tamping mechanism there is a way or track consistingof a pair of spaced parallel channel irons 8, which are set on edge andextend from side to side of the truck with the flanges 9 thereof facingoutwardly, said channel irons being secured V in separated relation bymeans of rivets or bolts 10, which have spacing sleeves 11, thereon,intermediate of the channel irons. The ends of the lower flanges 9 ofthese channel irons are secured to the depressed portion 2 of the sillsof the truck and spaced substantially midway between the channel irons5, so as to leave a space at each side thereof to accommodate thetamping members. A deep channeled longitudinal plate or carriage 12,straddles the channel irons 8, and the side flanges 13 thereof haveplurality of beveled rollers 14 pivotally mounted on pins 15, on theinner faces of the flanges 13, and engaging the upper and lower flanges9, of the channel irons 8, so that the carriage 12 may be easily movedtransversely of the truck and railroad track on the channel irons 8 as atrack. The carriage 12 is also provided at a plurality of placesthroughout its length with internal lugs 16, which have rollers 17mounted thereon by means of pins 18, which are threaded into the lugs16, so as to hold the rollers 17 for lateral engagement with the outerface of the channel irons 8. V

For reciprocating the carriage 12, there is a plate 19, adjacent oneside of the truck extending between and secured to the oppositeplatforms 6, and provided with upstanding bearings20 and 21 in which isjournaled a shaft 22, which eiitends beyond the end of the plate 19,over the platform 6,

and is journaled at the outer end in a bearing 23, on the platform. .Thebearings 20, are placed close together directly above the carriage 12,and the shaft 22, has a double crank 24, intermediate of the bearingsand approximately midway of the width of the carriage 12, which crank isconnected by means ofthe pitman 25, with a pivot pin 26, mounted betweenlugs 27, on the upper face of the carriage 12. The shaft 22 is rotatedduring the operation of the tamping devices by mechanism which will beherein after described, and serves to impart areciprocating movement to.the carriage 12, upon which the tamping devices are mounted, and movesthe tampi ng devices lengthwise .of the ties to enable them to firmlypack the ballast along the entire length of the ties.

This tamping machine may be constructed to tamp only at one side of thetie at a time, but I prefer to construct it so that tempers operatesimultaneously at both sides of the tie, as this will enable the worktobe more quickly performed and also enables the tamping members on eachside of the tie to, in a measure, work against the tempers on theopposite side to force the ballast compactly under the tie, and Itherefore pro vide a plurality of properly spaced pairs of vertical.guides 28, on the outer face of each flange 13, of the carriage 12,eachpair of which said guides is detachably secured to the flange '13,and engages the edges of a sliding block 29, located therebetween. Thisblock has a disk 30, adjacent the lower end thereof, faced from theflange'l and disposed. at an angle somewhat, as shown in Fig. 5, and hasthe disk 31 of the swivel block 32, which supports the tamping members,clamped thereto so that the normal position of the tamping member is atan angle to the side surface of the tie, and tends to pack the ballastmaterial against the side and under the tie. The number of tampingmembers employed depends upon the length of stroke of the crank 24:, orthe distance that the carriage l2 reciprocates, the tamping membersbeing arranged apart a distance somewhat less than the length of suchreciprocation so that the space tamped by each member will connect withor overlap the space tamped by the adjoining members and insure tampingthe material along the entire length of the tie.

in the present embodiment there are four equally spaced tamping membersat each side of the carriage l2 inside the rails, and atamping member ateach side of the carriage 12, at each end thereof which are spaced agreater distance than the intervening tamping members for tamping theballast .iaterial at the end of the tie outside of the rails. Obviouslythe outer tamping members and the ones next thereto are so spaced thatthe reciprocation of the carriage 12 will enable thenito operate up tothe rail, but will leave an intermediate space occupied by the rail nottraversed by the tamping ineinbe and the brace 19, which supports thebearings 20 of the shaft 32, is mounted directly above the rail so as tooccupy the space which is not traversed by the tamping members.

The tamping members are not illustrated in detail and may consist of anysuitable devices having a reciprocating hammer capable of tamoing theballast in place, an air hammer being preferable for this purpose as itis well adapted for the work and permits adjustable mounting whichcannot readily be employed with other types of tamping devices. Thetamping devices shown comprise a cylinder 33, having a reinforcing band34;, intermediate ot the ends, with trunnions 35 projecting therefromtor pivotally mounting the tamping device, and there is a plun er in thecylinder which has the stem 36 projecting from the lower end of: thecylinder, the lower end of said stem is .tlattened as at 87, orotherwise provided with a tamper head suitable for packing the ballastaround the tie. There is a connection 238 at the upper end of eachcylinder 33, which 's connected by means oi a hose 39, with the airsupply pipe &0, which is mounted in an elevated position on the carriagel). by means of the brackets ll, and has a valve 42, connected with eachhose 39, whereby the tamping devices may be independontly controlled;

Compressed air is supplied to the pipe id, and to the air hammers from atank through a hose 41 5i, leading from the tank to the pipe ant.connecting therewith through a FL ve which serves to control thesimultaneous operation of all the tr devices. lt will be observed thatthe 'l the hose rennet tion lielnveei'i the tank 4?). a the pipe 4H),permits reciprocation of the inatter described.

carriage 12, without interference, and also that the use of the hoseconnection 39, from the pipe lO to the tamping cylinders 33, permits awide range of adjustment of each tamping member, which will behereinafter more particularly noted, the hose connection in each casebeing made sufliciently long to permit the required adjustment or movement without endangering the security of the connection.

For reciprocating the carriage 12, and also operating the tampingmembers, I have provided on the platform 6, upon which the air tank 43is mounted, an electric motor a6, which may be used when electriccurrent is available, and also a gasolene engine 47, which may be usedwhen electric current cannot be had, both of which motors are arrangedto furnish power for operating the tamping mechanism and are capable ofbeing cut out by clutch mechanism as here- The shaft 22, whichreciprocates the carriage 12, projects across the top of the platform 6,upon which the motors are mounted, and the motors are arranged inposition to connect with said shaft for operating same. The gasolenemotor 4:7, is placed at right angles to and adjacent the outer end ofthe shaft 22 and has a beveled'gear ll) on the end of the crankshaftwhich meshes with a bevel gear 50 on the outer end of the shaft 22,which latter is adapted to be engaged with and disengaged from the shaltby means i the clutch 5i, operated. by the lever The electric motor 4-6is likewise arranged at: cert one side of the shaft 22 and at a rightangle thereto and has a. bevel. gear 53 on the arniature shaft whichmeshes with a companion bevel gear 5%, fast on the shaft 22. A clutch55, operated by the lever 56, cooperates with the bevel gear Siltoenable same to be engaged with or disengaged from the armature shaft sothatavhen the shaft 22 is co; eted by means of the clutch 51., foroperation by the gasolcne motor at, the gear 53, may be dis ngaged fromthe armature shaft to permit such operation without running the motor,and alsothat the clutch 51, may be disengaged from the gear 50, and theclutch engaged with the gear 53, to permit operation of the shaft .22 bymeans of the electric motor and to enable the gasolene engine t? to bedisconnected from the shaft 22 at such time. i

An air compressor indicated generally at 57, is mounted for directconnection with the motor l6, and has apipe 58 connected therewith andwith the tank 43 for providing the compressed air for operating thetamping devices. This compressor is likewise adapted tebe operated byeither the gasolene engine or the electric motor and has a clutch 59interposed between the electric motor and the compressor and operated bythe I ;.tended and: provided with a loose sprocket 61 thereon which isconnected by means of the drive chain 62, with a drive sprocket 63, onthe crank-shaft of the gasolenemotor 47, or the driving connection maybe made with a belt and pulley or any other suitable power transmissiondevices, and there is a clutch 64 on the compressor shaft operated bythe hand lever 65, whereby the compressor shaft may be engaged with ordisengaged from the sprocket 61, to cause operation of the compressor bymeans of the gasolene engine 47,

or permit the compressor to be operated independently of the gasolenemotor. Thus it will be observed that a control is provided wherebythecompressor and the reciprocating mechanism for the carriage 12, may beoperated by either the gasolene engine or the electric motor and it isalso possible if it should be desired at any time and the current" isavailable, that the reciprocating.

mechanism may be operated by one motor and the compressor may beoperated by' the other motor. Such operation however is not ordinarilycontemplated and may be made use of only in case of an emergency wherean unusual load was imposed upon the operating mechanism which requiredpower additional to that normally supplied by either motor.

The tamping members are arranged for vertical adjustment, the preferredarrange ment being such that all the tamping devices at one side of thecarriage 12, may be raised or lowered simultaneously, and to this endeach sliding block 29, which supports the tamping device, is provided onthe inner face thereof with a vertical row of gear teeth 66 forming arack intermediate of and parallel with the side flanges 67, and there isashaft 68, at the innerside of each flange 13 of the carriage 12, whichis mounted in bearings 69 provided on the inner face of the flanges 13,which'said shaft extends from end to end of the carriage 12, and has agear wheel 70 fixed thereon opposite each rack 66 and meshing therewiththrough an opening orfslot 71, in the flange 13, so that operation ofeither shaft 68 operates all the gears 70 thereon and by engagementthereof with the racks 66, raises or lowers all the sliding blocks 29 atthat side of the carriage 12. At one end of the carriage 12, is abearing plate 73, which is elongated so as to project inwardly towardthe channel iron 8 beyond the edge of the ratchet wheel 74, which isfixed on the outer end of the shaft 68 at the outer side of the bearing73, and

- there is an adjusting lever 75, pivoted at 'ening the cap screws 81.

swinging of the lower end of the tamper an pawl has a finger lever78,whereby it may be set for engagement with the ratchet gear 74. The handlever extends from the shaft 78 away from the channel iron 8, so

as to permitrreciprocation' of the saddle member 12, withoutintereference of the handle 75 with the channel iron 8, and also topermit convenient manipulation thereof by an operator on the platform 6.This device enables the ratchet wheel 74 to be rotated by means of alever 7 5, so as to operate the shaft 68 and gear wheels 70 thereon toelevate the tamping members to a position above the ties and they may beheld in this position by means of the pawl 77 when the truck is movedalong the rails, or the gear 74 may be operated by the lever '75 to:cause the tamping members to bear against the ballast material betweenthe ties and may be held in the depressed position by means of the pawl77, so as to insure holding the tamping members down against the work.

The disk 3O on the sliding block 29 has a socket or bearing 79 arrangedcentrally in the outer face within which is seated a nipple or stubshaft 80, which projects centrally from the outer face of the disk 31 ofthe swivel block 32, so that when the disks 30 and 31 are engagedtogether the nipple 80 and socket 79 provide a pivotal engagement oraxis to confine the movement of the disk 31 to a rotary movement aroundthe nipple as an axle. 'The disks 31 and 30 are held together by a pairof diametrically opposite cap screws 81, which are inserted througharcuate slots 82, upon opposite sides of the disk 31, adjacent theperiphery thereof, which said cap screws are threaded into the disk 30so that they may be released slightly and the swivel block 32 rotated onthe nipple 80 as a pivot and may be clamped in any position of suchadjustment by tight-- gularly as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 9, andlengthwise of the tie so as to tend to work the ballast material endwiseof the tie if desired, or permit adjustment of the tampers-at each sideof the rail so as to operate under the rail and insure packing of theballast material at that point as well as elsewhere along the length ofthe tie.

Adjustment is also provided for swinging the lower end of each tampingdevice to This permits and from the tie to accommodate ties of varyingwidth and also to enable the tamping devices to work aroundirregularities in the side faces ofthe tie, such adjustment beingprovided for by the pivotal engagement of the trunnions or pivot pins35, of the band 34:, with the arms 84, of the yoke, with which theswivel block 32 is provided. The pivot pin 35, at one side of thetamping device projects entirely through the arm 8d of the yoke and hasan arcuate rack 85, secured thereon by means of the key 86, so as toturn or swing with the cylinder 33 of the tamping device. For engagingthe teeth of the rack 85.to hold the tamping device in the variouspositions of adjustment, there is a lug 87, on the arm 84, extendingover the top of the gear face of the rack and having a perforation 88,through which is passed a pin 89, for engagement with'th'e teeth of therack 85. An arm 90, is formed at one side of the lug 87 and has a handlever 91 pivoted at the outer end thereof and the upper end of the pin89, is pivotally connected as at 92 with the inner end of the lever 91so as to beoperated thereby and there is a spring 93 engaging the innerend of the lever 91, so as to hold the same normally depressed and thepin 89 in engagement with the teeth of thearcuate rack 85. Each of thetamping devices is provided with this adjusting mechanism and each cantherefore be adjusted so that the lower end thereof operates at agreater or less distance from the side face of the tie by depressing thelever 91, and swinging the cylinder 33 to the desired position andreleasing the lever 91, to permit the pin 89 to seat in the rack 85 soas to hold the cylinder in such position of adjustment.

The operation is as follows:

The tamping devices having been elevated and locked in the elevatedposition so as to clear the surface of the ties, the truck is movedalong the rails so that the tamping devices straddle the tie which is tohave the ballast material packed therearound. The tie having been jackedor blocked up or being otherwise held in the position in which it isdesired to have it embedded in the ballast, the tamping mechanism ateach side of the carriage 12 is depressed by op erating the lever 75 andheld in the depressed position by means of the pawl 77 so as to hold thetamping devices from climbing or bouncing when thehammers are set inoperation. The hammers are then ad justed by means of the levers 91 ifthe ad justment of the previous operation is not suitable to the widthof the present tie, so as to swing the lower end of the tamping devicescloser to or farther away from the tie, and such adjustment enables oneor more of the tamping devices to be adjusted in case of an irregularityin the tie to accommodate such irregularity without the balance of thetamping devices being required to operate at an improper distance fromthe tie, which might be occasioned if all the tampmg devices wereconnected for adjustment together. The lower end of the tamping devicesmay also be swung lengthwise of the tie by loosening the cap screws 81and shifting the swivel block 32 so as to provide the required angle ofimpact against the ballast material, or to permit packing of thematerial directly under the rail. This latter adjustment, however, willordinarily re main the same after once being properly adjusted for theparticular stretch of the track and ballast material to be operated uponand also the adjustment by means of the levers 91 for swinging the lowerend of the tamping devices to and from the ties will remainsubstantially the same unless there should be a considerable differencein the width of the ties or considerable unevenness in the lateral facesthereof.

The gasolene engine at? or the electric motor 16, depending upon thepower available, having been previously set in operation and the clutchor having been engaged the compressor 57 will fill the tank 13 withcompressed air, which is held therein by means of the valve &5 whichcontrols communication of the air to the pipe 10. The valve e15 is thenopened which admits air to the pipe 10 and communicates same through thehose connections 39 to the tampers, which are rapidly reciprocatedthereby and pack the material down around the sides and force it underthe bottom of the tie, and at the same time that the valve to is openedthe lever 56 or 52, as the case may be, is thrown into engagement withits re spective gear wheel so as to operate the shaft and reciprocatethe carriage 12, so that the tamping devices as they operate are movedlengthwise of the tie so that the ballast mater'al is packed along theentire side surfaces of the tie.

Certain tamping devices may be withheld from operation, if for anyreason it is desired, by closing the valve 922 which controls the supplyof air thereto, and it is also' possible to elevate all of the tampingdevices at one side of the carriage 12 by means of the lever '15 andhold same in the elevated position by means of the pawl 77 and they maybe prevented from operation by closing the valves 12 thereof so that thetamping devices only at one side of the tie may be employed if desired.From the foregoing it will be noted that T have provided a tampingdevice which is capable of adjustment which enables it to meet allconditions of practical use and which is entirely under control of theoperator, and the operation of which is clearly within the view of theoperator or operators on the platform the ties are thoroughly i'nc'asedor packed and securely h'eld'in the ballast material. After, thematerial has been thoroughly packed around the tie thetamping devicesare elevated by means of the lever 75 so as to clearthe'ties andtlie'truck is moved forward to the next position of operation.

I have shown my device in connection with a simple "truck which isadapted to be pushed or pulled to the position of operation as thisappears to be the most convenient form for use. However, it may beconstructed so as to be capable of traveling under its own power ifdesired. There are also many other changes and modifications that may bemade without departing from the principles of my invention andItherefore do not purpose limiting the patent granted hereon otherwisethan necessitated by the priora'rt. I a i V .I claim as my invention; 7V

1'. In a device of thejclass described the combinationof a portableframe,ja reciprocal carriage mounted thereon, a vertically adjustablesupport on the carriage, and tampiiig means h aving a universally adjustable connection with the vertically movable support. 1

'2. In a device of the class described the combination of a portableframe, a, reciprocal carriage transversely movable thereon, a crankconnected with the carriage for automatically reciprocating the same,and adjustable tampi'ng means mounted on the carriage. V

In a device of the class described the combination'of a portable frame,a reciprocal carriage mounted thereon, 'means for automaticallyreciprocating the carriage, a plurality of tamping devices mountedon thecarriage, means for simultaneously adjusting the tamping devices foruniformly varying the elevation thereof, means for independentlyadjusting each tamping device in any position of elevation. i

a 4. In: a device of the class described the combination of a framehaving flanged wheels adapted to engage a track, a guide way mountedtransversely on the frame, a carriage on the guideway movable 'transversely 'of. the frame, means for automaticall'y reciprocating thecarriage, a series of tamping devices mounted on and arranged lengthwiseof the carriage, means for simultaneously and independently ad ustingthe tamping devices, and means for simultaneously and independentlyoperatingthe tamping devices.

5; In a deviceofthe class described the combination of a portable frame,a'carriage longitudinally ofthecarr'iage; V V

10; In a device oft'he class described the mounted to reciprocatetransversely thereon, a vertically adjustable support on the carriage, atamping device on the support, and means for pivotally adjusting thetamping device laterally and lengthwise of the carriage, f r

6. In a device of the class described the combination of a portableframe, a carriage mounted to reciprocate transversely thereon, aplurality of tamping devices mounted'on the carriage, means foradjusting thetampi'n'g devices relatively to the carriage, and flexiblepower transmission means for communicating power from the carriage tothe adjustable tainping devices.

"7. In a device 'of the classjdescribed the combination of a portableframe, a transversely reciprocal carriage mounted on the frame, aplurality of air hammers mounted on the carriage, s li'din'g means foradjusting the air hammers vertically on the carriage, pivotal means foradjusting the air hammers transversely and leiigth'vvise of thec"arria'ge,"and hose connections for commiinicatin'g power to theadjustable air hammers.

8. In a device of the class described the V ombination-with the railsand supporting ties of a portable frame provided with flangedfwheelengaging the rails, a carriage mounted on the framers reciprocate in adirection parallel with th'e'ties, plurality of tampin devicesinountedon the carriage and provided with tamping means operable below the"surface of,the tie, means for elevating and depressing the tamping devices, and means for adjusting the lower end of the tainping devices toand from and longitudinally ofthe tie.

9. In a device of the "class described the combination of'a portableframe having a transverse g uideway, a carriage mounted for movement onthe guideway, means for automatically reciprocating the carriage, aplurality of vertical guides on the carriage, taniping device's mountedin the vertical guides, a shaft extending lengthwise of the carriage,and provided with means thereon connected with the tamping "devices forelevating and lowering said devices, 'operat-' ing mechanism for saidshaft forholdin'g the cam ing devices in positionsof adjustment, andsupporting means for" adjusting the tamping devices sotha'tthe lowerends 7 thereof are" adjustable transversely combination of a portableframe, a transverse guide thereon, a carriage mounted on and of aremovable transversely and longitudinally of the carriage.

11. In a device of the class described the combination of a frame,having track wheels thereon adapted to operate on a railroad track, atransverse guide adjustably supported on the frame, and an upri httamping device mounted on the guideway and means for raising andlowering the tamping device, and adjusting the lower end of the tamping'device transversely and longitudinally of the frame.

12. In a device of the class described a transverse guideway on theframe, a tamping device movable along said guideway, means for adjustingthe tamping device angularly in a longitudinal direction with respect tosaid guideway and means for adjusting the tamping device vertically withrespect to said guideway.

18. In a device of the class described a transverse guideway on theframe, a tamping device movable along said guideway, means for adjustingthe tamping device angularly in a longitudinal direction with respect tosaid guideway.

14:. In a device of the class described a wheeled supporting frame and atamping device carried thereby and adjustable thereto in a longitudinaldirection, a vertical direction, and a transverse direction.

15. In a device of the class described, a wheeled supporting frame, apair of tamp-i ing devices carried thereby adapted to operate onopposite sides of a tie, each of said devices being independentlyadjustably relatively to the frame in a longitudinal direction, avertical direction and in a direction perpendicular to said longitudinaldirection.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presenceof two subscribing witnesses.

CORNELIUS G. HASTINGS.

lVitnesses CHARLES IV. HILLS, Jr., FRED E. PAESLER.

